Hips and shoulders turning, moving, controlling the center - Moving together through balance, uniting the body, mind and spirit

January 26, 2012

Back to the Mat?

I don't know. I've been considering a return to aikido training for some time now. As you can see, I haven't even posted to this blog since last June, and I've been jonesing to continue my progress.

There are several obstacles to overcome, of course - and they're not all that different from the obstacles one faces when first beginning. You have to find the right school, even if that "right" school is the same one you trained in before. You have to make room in the budget, even if it's not a huge amount. You have to re-find the time in your schedule, which has by now been taken up with other endeavors.

Certain doubts arise and fall away. What would my aikido look like after about 18 months of mat-less living? Can I still pull off a good kote-gaeshi? Could I ever pull off a good kote-gaeshi?

And what about other martial arts? Last month I wanted to check out a kung-fu school in the area, but could never find the time. What does that tell you about me? For a while I was interested in karate. To be fair, I'm still interested in karate. I absolutely love Shotokan kata. I've done (and will continue to do) a rather limited, informal study of judo and related principles in my buddy's garage. Judo fascinates me, and employs many of the same concepts as aikido (especially Tomiki aikido).

But it's clear to me that I'm not a practitioner of kung-fu; Neither am I a karateka or a judoka. I'm an aikidoka, specializing in the concepts put forth by Kenji Tomiki. And I have the time, money and ability to continue my training, but for some reason I haven't trained in a long time. I'll still do some more thinking about it, and surely won't just drop into the dojo this afternoon (other engagements anyway), but ight now I'm leaning toward going back to the same school I started in.

I've gone back and forth in my head on this. Sometimes I feel like it only makes sense to go back and continue my training there. I might not be able to simply pick up where I left off, but then that's not the goal anyway. But why wouldn't someone want to keep going in the same direction in their training? Other times I feel like I could never go back there, have nothing in common with the philosophy of the school, whatever. But at the end of the day, the net take is more positive than negative, and I still feel drawn to return, despite everything else.

Comments

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If you're thinking about getting on the mat just get back on the mat. It is interesting how your outside life and demands will adapt once again to you practicing Aikido. I'm sure too your friends and sensei will be glad to see you again!